Reminder!

This blog has moved! New posts will be appearing at http://joselynvaughn.com. Please update your bookmarks and subscriptions to the new site. 

Lots of exciting things will be happening there in the coming weeks. Don't miss out on the fun.

Another reminder, Sucker for a Hot Rod and Hauntings of the Heart are still on sale for 99 cents each. I'm not sure how much longer the sale will last, so get them while you can.

Holiday Sale!

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

Astraea Press is having a post-holiday sale.  Many books including Hauntings of the Heart and Sucker for a Hot Rod are only 99 cents.  They are also available on Amazon.

Happy Shopping!

Sweet Saturday Samples

Here's another snippet from the short story about Barbara and Elmer.  I'm leaning toward The Warden's Light as the title.

         She admired his focus and determination for learning about weather disasters and helping to prevent people being injured or killed in them. It seemed to be his only interest. Her mother said she was just as single-minded about numbers. Well, Barbara had other interests, hobbies, pursuits. She fantasized about plastering herself across the bank of weather monitors in his office, but she wasn’t brave enough to actually do it.

But maybe she could prove to him that not everything was connected to the weather. She’d have pictures to establish the Warden’s Light as a ghostly manifestation. These weren’t ideal conditions for a paranormal investigation, but she wasn’t a professional. She was bored and decided to check it out.

A Friday night and she was hanging out in the woods. Alone. Didn’t say much for her social life.

She hadn’t seen a thing so far. Not even the ghosts wanted to hang out with her. That’s what she got for being too interested in math, her mother said. Or being in love with the guy who never noticed when you wore that sweater, her best friend said.

A light flashed between the trees and Barbara’s pulse leapt. The air seemed to hum. She knelt on the ground to steady her arms against her knees. Her arms were shaking so badly, she’d end up with a hundred images of a fuzzy dot. She forced herself to calm down. Here it was. Here was her proof. Her camera poised in front of her nose, she snapped picture after picture. Her pulse zipped along at one twenty bips a minute. This was going to be good. 

I shared my favorite holiday cookie recipes last December.  You can find them here. 

You can also purchase my books at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Astraea Press, All Romance eBooks, Bookstrand and Smashwords.

Sweet Saturday Samples

From an untitled work in progress, hopefully a short story: (Barbara is a secondary character in Hauntings of the Heart.)

         The fishy, seaweedy smell of the lake wafted in the breeze, mixing with the damp mossiness of the trees. Barbara stared down the trail where the path disappeared around a curve.

The legend claimed a light would bob along the path shortly after twilight and when one approached it, the light disappeared. Those who claimed to have “seen” it said was the lantern of a warden who disappeared searching for an escaped inmate. Neither he or the inmate had ever been found. Some said the inmate killed the warden and buried him in the sand dunes. Others said the warden lost his way as a storm came across the lake, disoriented by the wind and raid, he wandered into the raging surf and drowned.

Ever since, the light had been called the Warden’s Light and had yet to be documented by an official team of paranormal investigators. She’d checked on the Internet at work this afternoon. Her boss wouldn’t care. He was the one who brought up the haunting. As always he claimed to think it was a natural phenomenon, but to him everything was a weather event. Blizzards, hurricanes, tornadoes, rain storms, cumulous clouds and clear skies. He was fascinated by it all. She doubted he thought of anything else.

Barbara had told herself that a lot lately. Specifically, every morning as she got dressed for work. It didn’t matter whether she wore the pencil skirt that accentuated her hips or the sweater that hugged her breasts, Elmer still wouldn’t notice her. 

Any title suggestions?

As always, you can find my other books at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, All Romance eBooks, Bookstrand and Smashwords.

Find more samples at Sweet Saturday Samples. 

Astraea Press Holiday Story Release Party

Welcome to the next stop on the Astraea Press Holiday Story Release Party!

My latest book, Hauntings of the Heart, was released just before Halloween.

When lost love shows up on your doorstep, what do you do?  Minnie Schultz slams the door in his face. She and Gordon Anderson have a history—close to ancient history, given the fifty years since their last encounter. After all that time, it might seem like water under the bridge. But the water pours from the plumbing in Minnie’s bed and breakfast, the Lilac Bower, uncovering all the secrets and heartache between them. With the help of some paranormal investigators, an Elvis impersonator and a couple of nosey friends, can Minnie and Gordon find the future they were meant to have?

Buy Links:

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, All Romance eBooks, Bookstrand and Smashwords.

Reviews:

Whispers from a Book: http://whispersfromabook.blogspot.com/2011/10/review-of-hauntings-of-heart-by-joselyn.html

Contest: 
Leave a comment with your email address for a chance to win a PDF of Hauntings of the Heart. If Blogger is cranky about commenting, send me an email with AP Holiday Release Party in the subject: jvaughn@joselynvaughn.com.

In other news:
Sherry Gloag, the Heart of Romance, is hosting me at her blog for the holiday weekend. I wish I was actually visiting her, since she is in the UK. Hopefully someday.

Join us across the pond at http://sherrygloagtheheartofromance.blogspot.com/ and see what trouble Minnie gets me into.

Happy Black Friday shopping to all you bargain-hunters out there!

Hop to the next blog on the tour: Elaine Cantrell

Sweet Saturday Samples

From Hauntings of the Heart:

Gordon Anderson dropped his fedora on the worn Formica
counter in the Carterville Register of Deeds office. He pressed the
bell labeled ‘ring for service’ and waited.

An empty office chair sat in front of shelves of files and
ledger books on the other side of the counter. Some of the books
appeared a hundred years old, and one of them held the records of
his family’s downfall. Events he planned to rectify, if only to ease
his mother’s final days.

A woman with unnaturally auburn hair approached the
reception area from behind the shelves. It had been long enough
since she’d been to the beauty shop that a half-­‐‑inch of white glared
out from her roots. She placed a stack of manila folders on the
counter and evaluated him over her half-­‐‑rimmed glasses. She wore
a cream blouse with a large silk bow at the collar and light blue
polyester pants. Dust smudged her sleeves where the folders had
rested.

“May I help you?” she asked, brushing at the marks.
Gordon leaned against the counter. The woman seemed
familiar, but he didn’t know anyone around here that old. Then he
realized she was probably the same age he was, probably one of his
friends. He’d been gone too long. He guessed, “Maybelle?”

The woman flushed slightly. “Yes.” She paused and he
could feel her dissecting the wrinkles around his eyes. “Gordon
Anderson?”

He smiled. She did recognize him, but he couldn’t judge the
tenor of her voice. Pleasantly surprised, or mildly disgusted? “It’s
been quite a while,” she said. “What brings you back to town?”


Get your copy at

Astraea

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Return to Sweet Saturday Samples for more great excerpts.

Sweet Saturday Samples

From Hauntings of the Heart:


“My client is prepared to make it worth your while.”
Minnie Schultz rolled her eyes and shifted the phone against
her shoulder. She’d received offers to sell her bed and breakfast
before, but this was outrageous. She traced the six zeroes the
attorney had quoted on her notepad until there were indents in its
cardboard backing. One million dollars.

Get your copy at

Astraea

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Return to Sweet Saturday Samples for more great excerpts.

Spooktacular Giveaway Hop

Welcome to the Spooktacular Giveaway Hop!

(If you are here for the Spookalicious Blog Hop, please scroll down to the next post. Feel free to enter both. The Spookalicious Giveaway ends the 24th at midnight.)

Minnie is really busy preparing for a Halloween Party so she *graciously* allowed me to have my blog back. I hope she didn't cause too much trouble while she was here.  She and her friend Edith have quite a reputation for mischief. 

I have exciting news to share.  Hauntings of the Heart is now available from Astraea Press.  So you can find out more about Minnie and her friends and get your not-so-haunted house fix before Halloween. 

When lost love shows up on your doorstep, what do you do?  Minnie Schultz slams the door in his face. She and Gordon Anderson have a history—close to ancient history, given the fifty years since their last encounter. After all that time, it might seem like water under the bridge. But the water pours from the plumbing in Minnie’s bed and breakfast, the Lilac Bower, uncovering all the secrets and heartache between them. With the help of some paranormal investigators, an Elvis impersonator and a couple of nosey friends, can Minnie and Gordon find the future they were meant to have?

From Amazon

Thank you to everyone participating in the Spooktacular Blog Hop for stopping by. 

By leaving your email address in the comments, you will be entered into a drawing for a $10 gift certificate to Amazon.com. 

You can also purchase my books at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, All Romance eBooks, Bookstrand and Smashwords. Check your local library for my first two, CEOs Don't Cry and Courting Sparks.  I would love to meet you all on Facebook and Twitter as well. 

Happy Hopping!

Return to the Spooktacular Linky List. 

SPOOK-A-LICIOUS: WHERE BOO-KS DEVOUR YOU: BLOG HOP TOUR (Oct 17-24)

It's Minnie again. Welcome to the Spook-a-licious: Where the Boo-ks Devour You: Blog Hop Tour.

I'm the lady with the haunted B & B, the Lilac Bower. The above is NOT a picture of it. Well, my B & B is not really haunted. I'm advertising that it is to drum up some business.  So far I'm getting a lot of interest on my YouTube video, but only a couple people have come to stay. 



And they are causing me problems.

The first guests are Elmer and Barbara Derecho--and you won't believe this: they are paranormal investigators, yeah, actual ghost hunters. They say if they can document the paranormal activity at the Bower, they will include it on their haunted places register. Can you say "free advertising"? I can. 

The obvious problem is that the Bower is not actually haunted, and I don't think my creepy sounds CD is going to fool their equipment.  They could expose me as a fraud and I really need the business, especially after  all the plumbing problems I've been having. (Ahem. Not me personally, the B & B. Sheesh!)
 
The other guest is Gordon Anderson. Sigh. There's not enough room here to talk about the problems he creates. You would need a whole book to do that. (Hey, Joselyn, did you see what I did there? )  Let's just say I slammed the door in his face as soon as I saw him on my doorstep. 

Suffice to say, I need more guests.  Hope you can drop by for some coffee or tea and some Halloween cookies.

Oh, I almost forgot.  (That Gordon, he gets me all turned around. I wish he'd go back to whatever prairie dog hill he crawled out of.) THERE'S A CONTEST!!! 

Leave a comment here or send an email to jvaughn@joselynvaughn.com with your email address for a chance to win a $10 gift certificate to Amazon or a PDF copy of Hauntings of the Heart when it comes out (which I hear is an absolutely fabulous story. ;-) )


And look here's the cover...

To see how my project is going, you can friend Joselyn on Facebook or follow her on Twitter. I'm hoping for lots of good news. 

You can read about some of my other adventures in CEOs Don’t Cry and Sucker for a Hot Rod.    Joselyn's books are available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Astraea Press, All Romance ebooks, and Bookstrand. 

Hop along on the rest of the Spook-a-licious: Where the Boo-ks Devour You: Blog Hop Tour.

So here are the rules:
1) HAVE FUN!!!

2) INVITE ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS!!! SPREAD THE WORD!!!

3) THIS TOUR STARTS: Monday, October 17, at Midnight (Arizona Time)
    THIS TOUR ENDS: Monday, October 24, at Midnight (Arizona Time)
    Winners will be drawn and posted October 25th! ***

4) MEET AND MINGLE WITH ALL THE AUTHORS & BOOK PAGES! EXPERIENCE A NEW DESTINATION AT EVERY STOP! PARTICIPATE IN EVERY BLOG CONTEST AND BE ENTERED FOR CHANCES TO WIN MULTIPLE PRIZES! EVERY BLOG VISITED IS ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO WIN!!

5) PARTICIPATION AT ALL BLOGS IS RECOMMENDED, BUT NOT REQUIRED. REMEMBER, THE MORE BLOGS YOU HOP, THE BETTER YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING PRIZES. EVERY AUTHOR & BOOK PAGE IS WAITING TO MEET AND INTERACT WITH YOU, SO PLEASE BE SURE TO SHOW THEM SOME LOVE!

6) DID I MENTION TO HAVE FUN? WHOO! HOO!! HERE WE GOOOOOOOOOOOO!***Authors & Book Pages have full discretion to choose an alternate winner in the event any winner fails to claim their prize(s) within 72 hours of their name being posted or after notification of win, whichever comes first. Anyone who participates in this blog hop tour is subject to these rules***

Autumn Harvest: Fall Between the Pages Fall Blog Hop Tour

Hi!  My name is Minnie and I’m the owner of the Lilac Bower bed and breakfast. I’m so glad you stopped by on the Autumn Harvest: Fall Between the Pages Fall Blog Hop. I’m honored to welcome you to Joselyn Vaughn’s blog.  

First off, we have plenty of attractive young men here.  You don’t happen to be single, do you? If you are, my friends and I can fix you up. We've got plenty of nephews and sons between us. And if I do say so myself, we are very good at this.  Just don't listen to anything Mark says.

As I said before, I own a bed and breakfast.  It’s the best place to stay in town.  It’s in a big old house with a wrap-around porch and plenty  of room in the back yard for a pumpkin patch. Its romantic and eclectic atmosphere makes it appealing to everyone.  If you’re nice, I’ll even let you examine my porcelain cat collection.

I love autumn. It’s my favorite season.  Unfortunately it’s also a really slow season for business at the B & B. Everyone goes farther north for the color tours and that leaves me a bit tight for spending money. My nephew Mark tells me I need a new roof next spring and I need to raise some funds.

Well, this year I have a plan. I’m calling it Hauntings of the Heart.  I’m going to turn the Lilac Bower into a haunted house.  You know, like an actual house that’s haunted. Not with people dressed up as vampires and such. Creaky doors. Shuffling noises in the walls. Footsteps in the attic. Strange mists. Cold spots. (Note to self – get the password for the A/C system from Mark.) I’ve got one of those creepy sounds CD’s and my friend Edith is going to help. So if you want to stay in a haunted house, this is the place for you.

So if you could help me out and spread the word about the haunted house (and the attractive young men :-)); I’d love to be all booked up for October. I’ve got eight suites, so there’s plenty of room for your friends.

To see how my project is going, you can friend Joselyn on Facebook or follow her on Twitter. I'm hoping for lots of good news. 

You can read about some of my other adventures in CEOs Don’t Cry and Sucker for a Hot Rod.  Have a great tour on the blog hop.  I gotta go.  I can hear something dripping upstairs (and I don't have any guests).

Oh, before I forget.  You have to sign up for this CONTEST!!!  Well, you don't have to, but why wouldn't you? The winner gets a selection of Bath and Body Works lotions. Just leave a comment with your email address on this blog.  (If you have trouble leaving a comment, send an email to jvaughn@joselynvaughn.com and include your email in the message.) 

Blog Hop Rules: 

1) HAVE FUN!!!

2) INVITE ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS!!! SPREAD THE WORD!!!

3) THIS TOUR STARTS: Monday, September 19, at Midnight (Arizona Time)

THIS TOUR ENDS: Monday, September 26, at Midnight (Arizona Time)

Winners will be drawn and posted September 27th! *** 

4) MEET AND MINGLE WITH ALL THE AUTHORS & BOOK PAGES! EXPERIENCE A NEW DESTINATION AT EVERY STOP! PARTICIPATE IN EVERY BLOG CONTEST AND BE ENTERED FOR CHANCES TO WIN MULTIPLE PRIZES! EVERY BLOG VISITED IS ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO WIN!!

5) PARTICIPATION AT ALL BLOGS IS RECOMMENDED, BUT NOT REQUIRED. REMEMBER, THE MORE BLOGS YOU HOP, THE BETTER YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING PRIZES. EVERY AUTHOR & BOOK PAGE IS WAITING TO MEET AND INTERACT WITH YOU, SO PLEASE BE SURE TO SHOW THEM SOME LOVE!

6) DID I MENTION TO HAVE FUN? WHOO! HOO!! HERE WE GOOOOOOOOOOOO!

***Authors & Book Pages have full discretion to choose an alternate winner in the event any winner fails to claim their prize(s) within 72 hours of their name being posted or after notification of win, whichever comes first. Anyone who participates in this blog hop tour is subject to these rules***

Back to the Blog Hop List.

Thanks for stopping by!  Hope you have a great hop!

You can also purchase Joselyn Vaughn's books at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, All Romance eBooks, Bookstrand and Smashwords.

Hauntings of the Heart

Exciting News!

Hauntings of the Heart (formerly known as Locations of the Heart) was accepted by Astraea Press!

I can't wait for you to read Minnie's story. If you've read CEOs Don't Cry, Minnie is the owner of the Lilac Bower and Mark's aunt. You can read bits and pieces that were posted on the blog here. (http://joselynvaughn.blogspot.com/search/label/Locations%20of%20the%20Heart).

Woohoo!